My Adventure on Santa Catalina Island!

     Hi! My name is Joshua Hahm. I'm from South Korea and I am currently a UCP student here at UCR. I would like to share a great experience I had while traveling Santa Catalina Island.

     Santa Catalina Island, also known as just Catalina, is a big island located off the coast of California. Many foreigners do not know about Catalina, but it is a huge attraction to people living here. The fact that around one million people travel to Catalina Island every year shows how much Californians love this island. Not only are there great sceneries, but there are also various chances to experience water-involving activities. Such as snorkeling, scuba-diving, parasailing, jet skiing are some of the examples.

     My friends and I went to Catalina Island on May 19th. We had to reserve tickets few days earlier in order to get the seats, because they usually get sold out in summer time. It was the first time for us to ride a ferry here so we were really excited to see the ocean. It turned out to be awesome! Thanks to the nice weather, we were able to enjoy great scenery and we actually saw some dolphins during the ride.

     When we arrived at the port, we were surprised by the looks of the city, Avalon and the color of the sea water. Especially, it had the color I had never seen in California. To look around the island, we had two options other than just walking. We could rent bikes or a golf cart to travel around the city. Since we had only one day, we didn't want to walk. So, we chose bikes to look around the beaches and the parks in Avalon. However, our thought that it is possible to travel the whole city with a bike was a huge mistake. At first, we had great time enjoying views at the beach and riding on the well-paved bike routes. After having lunch, we decided to go on the scenic route which we considered the highlights of our travel. But, we didn't expect such a steep hill. Therefore we had to carry our bikes up to the top instead of riding them. The views were fantastic, somewhat relieving pains we had carrying and half-riding our heavy bikes up there.

    

 Afterward, we went to souvenir shops and relaxed at the beach watching people doing scuba diving and parasailing. We all agreed that it was a tiring and effort-taking but it was worth it because it is now a great memory to us all.

Movie Review

Check out this Movie Review of "Star Trek: Into Darkness," by Danah Alkurdi!

Star Trek: Into Darkness

By: Danah Alkurdi

           For 6 months I have been looking forward to watching “Star Trek: Into Darkness”. I am a huge “Star Trek” fan and I loved the last movie that came out. When it was finally released, I took my friends and went to the University Village Regency Theater on Sunday and watched it for only $5, which is the price for a movie there every Sunday.

“Star Trek” is an iconic franchise. So much so that there are dozens of conventions that are planned every year all over the world that caters specifically to Star Trek fans. When J.J. Abrams, Director and Producer of “Star Trek: Into Darkness”, took hold of the franchise, many people did not think that he would give it justice since he has admitted to not being a “Star Trek” fan.

            However, with the premier of this new blockbuster, all doubts of Abrams’ ability have been erased. This was an amazing movie that promised much in the buildup to the release and delivered everything it promised.

            The first 10 minutes of the movie started with all that one could want or hope in a “Star Trek” movie—an indigenous race, a Spock logic moment and the U.S.S Enterprise majestically lifting out of a sea and saving a world from an imminent volcano eruption.

            The movie does not only cater to the legions of Star Trek fans, but also to the fans of action and adventure. There are several nods to the Star Trek: Original Series where Captain Kirk and Commander Spock first debuted, but these events do not reduce the enjoyment for non-Trek fans. The plot twists, explosions and hardships that the crew of the U.S.S Enterprise go through are plenty and extremely thrilling. The movie also incorporates funny moments in the middle of the serious and tragic in a tactful and amusing way.

Even if this movie sported many good things that I like to see in a science-fiction/action-adventure movie, it also showed a few things that I am not a fan of. One of the staples of the Sci-Fi genre is the need to introduce a scantily dressed woman for a scene or two to cater to the genre’s male audience. “Star Trek: Into Darkness” incorporated this sci-fi must-do in the most flimsy of reasons; there was absolutely no need for it in the context of the events in which it happened.    

            One of the most memorable aspects of the movie was the main villain and the actor that gave the character his fire. Benedict Cumberbatch gives a bone chilling and passion filled performance as John Harrison, a Starfleet officer gone rogue who plans to destroy everything Starfleet and hurtles the U.S.S Enterprise’s crew into disaster.

            The script is intelligently written, layered and character driven. All of our favorite characters had their special moments and they shined within them. We saw the Chief Engineer Scotty with his jovial Scottish self, Science Officer Bones with his hilariously surly self, Lt. Uhura with her great intelligence and strong attitude, Lt. Sulu with his stoic self, and Ensign Chekov with his loyal and comedic self. The actors themselves gave their best performances in this film. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto give new life and passion to the bromance of Kirk and Spock and play it well against the evil brilliance of Benedict Cumberbatch’s villain.

            The special effects of the movie left me breathless as I watched the U.S.S Enterprise go into warp, the enemy ship crash land from space into Starfleet Headquarters and the characters beaming in and out into the ship. It was worth watching this movie in IMAX and 3D to be regaled with the beauty and high definition that Abrams intended.

            My advice is to see this movie. I definitely enjoyed it and will most probably own it on DVD once it is released. I give “Star Trek: Into Darkness” a whole hearted A+.